


mint and sugar

by nonbinarywithaknife (littleboxes)



Series: me sobbing about critical role [109]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: (briefly) - Freeform, Crushes, F/F, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Gen, Minor Violence, Multi, Non-Graphic Violence, One Shot, Polyamory, unedited, vaguely implied character death but in an impermanent dnd way and it's for like 2 seconds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-13
Updated: 2019-09-13
Packaged: 2020-10-17 20:44:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20627270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littleboxes/pseuds/nonbinarywithaknife
Summary: Nott has a crush on Jester and a very supportive husband.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Anon: Nott prompt! Nott/Jester first kiss (maybe with some neat stuff about polyamory being super common for halflings thrown in there?? Poly nott... Very good)

It catches her offguard, the first time she thinks it.

It’s late, and they’re all out at a tavern, celebrating their latest successful job. Just a simple ‘kill all the things’ mission, nothing heavy, but it had taken them all the way out by Asarius. Jester is arm-wrestling a bugbear hunter, and they’ve drawn a crowd- mostly because Jester is winning.

She’s smiling all the way, and even calling out encouragement to her opponent, but seconds later, the furry arm hits the table and the crowd goes wild. Jester leaps up, triumphant, and her eyes catch on Nott’s. She swoops down and kisses her on the cheek, before being caught up by the rest of the group, everyone laughing and slapping each other on the back.

Normally, Nott would be right there with them- she’s certainly drunk enough for it. But, all she can think about is how cool and minty Jester’s lips were, with the faint suggestion of sugar.

The thought of Jester’s lips never really goes away after that. It’s not the _only_ thing on her mind, of course, but whenever Jester touches her (which, now that she’s paying attention, is pretty often. A kiss on the cheek, the nose, a tight grip on her arm, a celebratory bear hug. Of course, she does it to the others, too, she’s loveable like that. But. Nott can’t help but think it’s, _different_, with her.) 

It’s maybe three weeks after that first celebratory kiss on the cheek that Nott admits to herself she has a crush. It’s weird. Not, weird-weird, the way some races get about polyamory, but mostly because Nott’s only had one crush in her life, and she married him. She’s- not quite sure what to _do_. With Yeza, it had seemed so simple. _Life_ had seemed so simple, so, so _linear_, Caleb would say. And, yes, her and Yeza had talked about the possibility of others, they- well, they hadn’t exactly had time enough to put it in practice.

Finally, they’re back in Rosohna, Yeza beaming at her and talking about all the new, different types of pastry he can try out. She’s glad he’s found something good to associate with Xhorhas, rather than imprisonment and starvation. She tries to bring it up right away, but it never seems like the right time. One thing or another grabs her attention, or he has to dash off to pull an experiment off the heat, and so it happens that the whole day passes without her bringing it up.

They’re in bed, about to turn off the lights, when she blurts it out. She knows if she doesn’t tell him today she’ll never get the words out.

“I have a crush on Jester!”

Yeza pauses, and then sits up. “Well, alright. Um, congratulations? Are you two, y’know, together, yet?”

Nott sits there, staring at him. Of course he wouldn’t have a problem with it, he didn’t have a problem with her being _a goblin_ why on earth would _this_ be an issue, but still, somehow, his reply catches her off-guard.

“Well- I, figured I ought to let you know, before, uh, I, did anything. I- we’ve never actually.. done, this, before, you know? And I know we talked about it but that was- before, a while ago, and I wasn’t sure if you, um, felt the same? About it?”

Yeza is beaming at her again. She can’t help but beam back, even despite the awkwardness she can’t seem to shake, even here.

“Honey, I’m _happy_ for you! Granted, I don’t know her as well as you do, but from what I’ve seen, Jester seems lovely! So, how are you going to ask her?”

Nott freezes. Oh no. How is she going to tell her? What do tieflings think about marriage? Her mom’s the Ruby of the Sea, surely she didn’t have a problem with it?

Nott felt a finger poke her arm. Yeza was smiling at her, a knowing look on his face.

“You’re overthinking again,” he said, and then leaned forward to hug her.

“Just tell her. Everything will work itself out from there.”

In the end, Nott doesn’t tell her. Instead, during a fight that shouldn’t have been an issue for them, some asshole bandit gets a lucky shot and Jester goes down. Caduceus is fending off a wolf that had gotten too close for comfort, and is too far away to do anything. Nott, however. Nott is crouching behind a boulder feet away. She can feel the weight of a healing potion in her pocket, and there isn’t even a choice when she hears Jester shriek in pain and then a dull thud.

She shoots out like a rocket and prays to every god she knows that she’l get there in time. She does. A few seconds later and one empty vial later, Jester is opening her eyes with a soft yet emphatic, “_ow,_” and all Nott can think is, _I almost lost you_.

Nott and Jester kiss for the first time in a muddy forest, surrounded by the corpses of bandits and the gawking faces of their friends.

(Several minutes later, Nott has to sit the humans (and Fjord) down and explain that polyamory is exceptionally common in halfling culture. Thankfully, it takes only a couple of minutes and then she has to contend with the _questions_.)


	2. chapter two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nott answers some questions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SURPRISE SECOND CHAPTER I DIDN'T KNOW THIS WAS COMING EITHER HERE YOU GO

“Okay, so most halflings are actually in triad marriages, I get that, but then what’s you’re and Yeza’s deal?”

Beau is the one who keeps asking questions- not that Nott minds all that much, even if it is weird to explain things that, once upon a time, had just been known by everyone. Fjord looked confused and slightly alarmed at first, but sat listening quietly as Nott explained, and looked genuinely happy for her, which was nice. Caleb was also quiet, but he’d given her an awkward thumbs up at one point, and she knew he’d most likely talk to her later.

“Well, we’d talked about it, a little, but we were still fairly young when we got married and Luc hadn’t been planned, and well. We- I- thought, well we figured we’d have time.”

Nott tries to push out the memories that spring up, but thankfully is distracted by Jester speaking up.

“Does this mean I’m married to Yeza now? Because like, he seems s_u_per cool and everything but I don’t think we’ve ever actually _talked_, you know?”

Nott can’t help chuckling a little at that. “No, that isn’t really how it works. I’m married to Yeza, and you’re dating me. Simple as that. If he got a partner, they wouldn’t be married to me, either.”

Fjord raises his hand and then seems to realize how weird that is and just speaks. “So… what are halfling weddings even like? I’d imagine it’s different than what you do on a ship.”

Beau sits up straighter at this, and so does Caleb. Even Caduceus gives her his full attention, but that’s sort of his default expression, so she’s not sure. She knows they want the details of her and Yeza’s wedding, and she realizes that- she doesn’t actually mind telling them. She hasn’t been able to talk about this for so long- it’s. Nice.

“Well, ours was outside- most weddings in Felderwin were outside, or in the local temple, if it was a winter wedding or they were super religious. Mine was- it was out in one of the tillage fields, I forget who owned it. It was towards the end of summer, just at the start of the wheat harvest.

It wasn’t a huge thing, really. We didn’t have many friends or much money, and were content with a small ceremony. I’m not sure how most humans do it, but we had ours at sunset. There’s a meaning to it, some story about the sun’s blessing, but mostly it’s just tradition. I wore flowers in my hair and of course, I sewed my dress myself, just like Yeza sewed his own suit.

We stood together in the wheat field, with our familes in attendance, and told each other why we wanted to marry each other. It was dark by the end, and we all headed up to the Lawmaster’s office, to make it official.

The next day our porch was covered in gifts- we weren’t the most popular people in town, but you don’t just _ignore_ a wedding, even if you hate the people getting married, you _have_ to send some food. It’s just- well, I can’t imagine not doing it. It’s just wrong. And- that was it. We were already living together, and Luc was born a year or so later.”

“That sounds _really_ beautiful,” Jester says, leaning into Nott’s side, “I’ve love to see one, one day,” she continues, quieter, so Nott is the only one to hear it.

She can’t help the warm feeling in her chest at the words. This wonderful thing is so new, she should be scared, she’s _always_ scared, and yet.

Halfling weddings really are beautiful things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anon: based entirely on that anon prompt story's ending, a prompt for nott/jester where nott answers the questions the rest of her friends have about polyamory and whatever else they might have questions on for halfling culture, since their asking things anyway. Maybe Jester asking some stuff about if shes married to yeza now too or what.


End file.
